OSU and South Africa Collaborate to Combat Antibiotic Resistant "Superbugs"

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Date

2014-05-01

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Ohio State University. Office of Outreach and Engagement

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Abstract

The world is running out of effective antibiotics due to escalating rates of antibiotic-resistant "superbugs." Years of overuse, misuse, and abuse of antibiotics in humans and animals created this public health crisis. Hospitals are implementing antibiotic stewardship programs to optimize antibiotic use. In South Africa, a lack of infectious disease-trained pharmacists creates a challenge. Our purpose is to develop an antibiotic stewardship outreach program and facilitate an OSU-South Africa pharmacists network to lead antibiotic stewardship programs.

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IMPACT. 1: Antibiotic-resistant "superbugs" are escalating while new antibiotics are diminishing. OSU-South Africa "train the trainer" mentoring program will provide pharmacists with the necessary skill set to contribute to antibiotic stewardship. -- 2. Antibiotic stewardship outreach programs are most effective when they are multidisciplinary. South African pharmacists will learn how to monitor antibiotics and measure patient outcomes while working on a healthcare team. -- 3. Patient advocacy for antibiotic stewardship is needed. We'll create an iBook for the South African Health Minister to gain long-term support for the program. Twitter will also be used.
OSU PARTNERS: College of Medicine; College of Pharmacy; College of Veterinary Medicine; Department of Medicine Infectious Diseases; Department of Pharmacy; OSU Digital First; OSU Wexner Medical Center
COMMUNITY PARTNERS: Federation of Infectious Diseases of Southern Africa; National Laboratory Services, AMPATH; Netcare Ltd.; South African Antibiotic Stewardship Programme; South African Society of Clinical Pharmacists; University of Cape Town Groote Schuur Hospital; University of Stellenbosch Tygerberg Hospital
PRIMARY CONTACT: Debra Goff (debbie.goff@osumc.edu)

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Engaged Scholars, v. 2 (2014).